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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 11 of 11. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Minty on December 9, 2004, at 20:48:33
Hi. I'm Minty and I just wanted to introduce myself to the group. I am almost 21, and I am taking the medicine Effexor for Social Anxiety. I got married in July of this year and moved from my home town to a large city. That was a rough move. I am starting to adjust but it has been really hard. Well, I will talk to you all later.
-Minty
Posted by saw on December 10, 2004, at 4:05:40
In reply to New member, posted by Minty on December 9, 2004, at 20:48:33
Hi Minty
Welcome to Babble
Social Anxiety, turning 21 (a milestone), getting married (another milestone), and then a move to a city? Wow - a lot to deal with.
It is good that you are starting to adjust.
Look forward to getting to know you.
Sabrina
Posted by Minty on December 10, 2004, at 12:04:16
In reply to Re: New member, posted by saw on December 10, 2004, at 4:05:40
Sabrina,
Yeah, I guess it is a lot to deal with. I almost had a breakdown too. Well, I ended up in the hospital for a migraine and realized it was caused by all of this stress. I am now trying to work with a social worker to help me get more adjusted.
I'm looking forward to getting to know you too!
-Minty
Posted by slavegirl on December 21, 2004, at 13:17:23
In reply to New member, posted by Minty on December 9, 2004, at 20:48:33
Hi Minty and welcome. Try to remember that moving is right up there amongst the biggest stress factors you'll ever go through...and then being married...well - another. And then, trying to find yourself in terms of being a wife...and no longer just Minty...another one. And when you have a baby, you're then Mom, then wife, and then Minty and it's a huge adjustment in terms of defining your roles, finding yourself and remembering who you are. Congrats anyway on the marriage....baby steps is all I can say...one day at a time, and try to enjoy the small things (says me.....I'm trying to find this at the age of 36....but I AM TRYING).
Hugz
SG
Posted by Jen2 on January 23, 2005, at 19:14:00
In reply to New member, posted by Minty on December 9, 2004, at 20:48:33
Hi Minty and all,
I'm new too. I've been reading psycho-babble and this newbies group for the past week after I started taking Effexor, and these boards have been a great help to me. So I've decided to post for the first time - hope my rant isn't too rantish.
Two years ago I also moved to a new city - halfway across the country, where I knew exactly one person (aside from my partner with whom I moved). I had 4 months of misery, then worked for a while (which was also miserable - almost intolerable) and then returned to school to do a masters degree. And that's been kind of miserable too.
In November I had a bit of a, you might say, nervous breakdown. I was suffering from school (performance) anxiety and intense pressures from relationships, although I think the fact that I'm a workaholic and that I've been working for the past 10 years in extraordinarily stressful jobs (in politics) didn't help matters. It was the worst three weeks of my life. I was extraordinarily anxious, paranoid, incredibly depressed, not quite delusional but almost, heart palpitations constantly the whole time. It was like something snapped in my brain that then affected my whole system. I felt like I was going to die.
I went to my doctor, who initially prescribed Lorazepam. It made me feel dead inside so she prescribed Effexor instead, but I was afraid of taking an antidepressant so decided I would just coast through Christmas and see how I felt afterwards. Well, Christmas was depressing, I felt a bit better but not great, and then after returning to school for two weeks I thought again that I was going to die. So I started taking the meds. I had to do something.
Well, here's where it gets interesting. The first couple of days were fine - I didn't feel anything at all. Days three through five were a living nightmare. Nervous, anxious, sweaty, horribly depressed, couldn't focus my eyes (which also happened throughout my anxiety), felt disconnected from myself, crying jags, horrible horrible horrible. Spent three days on the couch watching bad TV and could barely cope with that. Days six and seven were tolerable, but day eight was a return to the pit of despair and physical terror. So I had a week of hell - I was white knuckling it through my days.
Day nine was OK, but on day ten the clouds parted and the sun came out. I'm on day twelve now, and I'm feeling more content and able to cope than I have in months if not years. (I am, however, feeling no anxiety at all, which isn't good because I have very little motivation to get my work done. But right now, it's better than the anxiety and depression so I'm not going to sweat it for a while.)
The nasty part of this is that, while the doctor prescribed the starter 37.5mg dose - which I thought I was taking - the pharmacist actually dispensed the 75mg dose. I didn't figure that out until day ten - who would think, especially in the depths of despair, to examine your pills to ensure the pharmacist gave you the right dosage? Not me. So I have been taking double the dose that I should have. No wonder I felt like I was going to die. I thought it was just my anxiety and depression, but it was actually the meds. I'm so angry about this. I couldn't cope for an entire week - I lost a week out of school and out of my life and it's the damn pharmacist's fault.
So not only am I angry about having been prescribed a drug that, I now find out thanks to these boards, has such serious side effects and the potential for horrible withdrawal, I'm also angry that my pharmacist screwed up and made my already hellish life more hellish for a week.
So sorry about this long ranty post. I just had to get this off my chest. I hope that you are doing OK on the Effexor, Minty. And I hope that I will continue to do well. At least I don't have to decide when to up my dosage - for the time being. And I'll think about managing the withdrawal when the time comes.
Best to all,
Jen
Posted by up'n'down on January 28, 2005, at 4:41:20
In reply to Re: New member on Effexor, posted by Jen2 on January 23, 2005, at 19:14:00
As if you weren't suffering enough already! Words fail me in trying to tell you how horrified I am at what happened to you. Hopefully, your life will go much more smoothly now.
Posted by jen2 on January 30, 2005, at 12:24:57
In reply to the unecessary suffering of Jen2, posted by up'n'down on January 28, 2005, at 4:41:20
Thanks for this up'n'down. Things *are* getting much better. I'm having a problem with motivation now, but I'm feeling so much better than I was before I can hardly believe it. No paranoia, no anxiety, no pit of depression. I feel quite even, just a little on the depressed side. And my doc says that the meds should help with that in the coming weeks. If she's right, I will be very happy, although I dread the withdrawal when the time comes.
Thanks for your sympathy.
Jen
Posted by Minty on January 30, 2005, at 19:42:06
In reply to Re: New member on Effexor, posted by Jen2 on January 23, 2005, at 19:14:00
Hi Jen. I just wanted to tell you that I had a horrible time trying to get off of Effexor. I know it can be hard. I had to go back on it because it was too hard and was causing me to have migraines. I think that doctors should have to tell us about the side effects of trying to go off of it because they can put you in the hospital. My husband quit taking them and ended up in the hospital with flu-like symptoms. I hope that your meds are leveled out now. That always helps. Good luck!
Posted by Priss on April 13, 2005, at 21:51:38
In reply to Re: New member on Effexor, posted by Jen2 on January 23, 2005, at 19:14:00
Please help- I found this message board on a Google search for the new medication I was prescribed yesterday. I went to a clinic at the urging of friends- I have been depressed & almost suicidal lately- The Dr prescribed Effexor XR 75mg and Xanax- but the pharmacy said they refused to carry Xanax anymore because it was too addictive, so they replaced it with Lorazepam .5mg. I am supposed to take one Effexor XR 75 PA in the morning & .5 Lorazepam 3 times a day. The Dr told me to take it like that, but the pharmacist told me to only take it when I felt like I needed it because it was addictive. I took a Lorazepam last evening when I got home, but did not notice a difference really. This morning I took a Effexor XR 75mg and almost right away felt something. I started to feel almost wired & I took a Lorazepam. It is later in the evening now & I have been sleeping for hours. I tried to eat a few crackers & cheese, but I feel so nauseous. I am going to take another Lorazepam now. I would like to chat with someone who is familiar with these things. The doctor said he is treating me for anxiety, but I am feeling anxious about the meds....thanks
Posted by shermanvolvo on June 20, 2005, at 18:08:22
In reply to Re: New member on Effexor- Lorazepam too??, posted by Priss on April 13, 2005, at 21:51:38
Hey there :)
I have had experience with all of the above drugs & can only offer you my personal experience. Please recognize that we ALL respond differently to meds, and everyone's experiences may be different, so don't take anyone's experiences as *your* truth.
That said, I totally relate to you wanting to hear about other people's experiences; I am the same way too :)
In my opinion, I really don't feel comfortable with a pharmacy mixing up your meds; I don't know if you are in the US and if so, what things are like there (I am in Canada) but it really shouldn't be up to a pharmacist what meds you are taking... I could be out to lunch, but I really think you should talk to your doctor about this.
That said, I would like to say I have seen doctors (generally, GP's - family doctors) be WAY out to lunch prescribing *habit-forming* meds, so pharmacists often give some good advice. For instance, I got a nice little addiction to imovane (zopiclone) that my GP SWORE up and down was not addictive. Thank goodness I ended up chatting with a psychiatrist who said *um, yeah it is.... (And I went to the psychiatrist at the good advice of a very awesome pharmacist; they are frequently more aware of meds than doctors!)
But I digress...
Typically, things like lorazepam are best PRN (taken when needed) but if you are just starting meds to curb your anxiety, it will take time for them to sink in, and for you to see if they work. So this is perhaps why your doctor wanted you to take them throughout the day.
New meds usually mess up one's system; this doesn't mean that this is how you will always feel taking them. That said, don't be afraid to talk to a pharmacist or doctor if you feel the symptom is serious. As for the anxiety, I felt quite anxious taking effexor when I started. It messed up my sleep patterns for a few weeks, but eventually, it regulated. I found that therapy and self-help stuff to curb and prevent anxiety was way more effective than any PRN meds but it took me almost 10 years to realise this... I was so scared of my anxiety, I made myself worse for years...
Anyways, please share more of your situation, and feel free to email me privately at shermanvolvo@shaw.ca
Posted by gardenergirl on June 20, 2005, at 21:58:43
In reply to Re: New member on Effexor- Lorazepam too??, posted by shermanvolvo on June 20, 2005, at 18:08:22
Great post. Welcome to Babble.
gg
This is the end of the thread.
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